New York’s former governor, Eliot Spitzer, has lambasted the US Department of
Justice for failing to bring charges against News Corporation’s directors
over the police bribery scandal.

Mr Spitzer, who has himself been laid low by scandal, said the “inept” DoJ was not acting fast enough in dealing with “the most important case” on its books.

Both the DoJ and America’s Federal Bureau of Investigation have spent around a year investigating phone hacking and police bribery at Rupert Murdoch’s media behemoth but they have yet to charge the company or its board.

Writing in US political magazine, Slate, Mr Spitzer said: “The DOJ has brought many irrelevant and tiny cases against companies for violating [America’s] Foreign Corrupt Practices Act [FCPA], which makes it illegal to bribe either individuals or government officials, even in a company's overseas operations.

“The DoJ loves to use the statute to show just how tough it is. Yet now they have the most important case sitting right there in front of them. It's easy. Even a rookie could field this one.”

He added: “What are they doing? It's not clear. If they fail to make this case against News Corp, Eric Holder is a failure as attorney general.”

Sources close to the DoJ told the Telegraph that the law enforcement agency can often take years to prosecute companies under FCPA law, but that it comes down hard on those companies when it finally swings into action.

It also has an appetite for bringing individuals to justice, seizing the personal assets and potentially jailing directors, whether or not they were directly involved with bribery of overseas officials.

Mr Spitzer also expressed incredulity at News Corp’s apparent protection of Rupert Murdoch’s son James. “There’s no accountability at that company,” he claimed.

Mr Murdoch, who was chairman of News International when the phone hacking scandal erupted, has come in for heavy criticism by MPs and regulators over his handling of the matter.

Ofcom, the broadcasting regulator, last week savaged his “character and competence” as a chief executive or chairman. However, he could be promoted to run News Corp’s entire television business, depending on the outcome of various legal investigations in Britain.

“Do the folks who run News Corp really believe James Murdoch should be in charge of the TV operations?” Mr Spitzer said. “Have they read the record that clearly suggests that Murdoch either participated in this activity or wilfully ignored what he was being told?

The guy wouldn't be permitted out of a management trainee course in any company I've been involved in.”